Featured Articles

Chester board wrestles with Class 4 road issues

By Shawn Cunningham © 2025 Telegraph Publishing LLC There was no calm before the storm at the Nov. 5 Chester Select Board meeting with property owner Kirk MacGinnis forcefully making demands of the chair even before the minutes from the Oct. 1 meeting could be reviewed. In a confrontational style that includes handouts listing statute […]

A new year and new businesses coming to the Green, and more

Editor’s Note: Last week The Chester Telegraph took a look at what seems to be an uptick in Chester business activity through the lens of the hospitality sector – namely restaurants. This week’s focus is on what’s happening in the retail marketplace beginning with movement on the Green. By Shawn Cunningham © 2025 Telegraph Publishing […]

With Create Together, Fletcher Farm turns the page toward a new community artistic vision

By Lorien Strange ©2025 Telegraph Publishing LLC Locals think they know what’s going on here,” says Kathryn Svec as she leans against a cabinet in a recently refurbished pottery studio. Outside the long, low building just north of Cavendish, everything is puddles and gray. But that’s not dampening the quiet enthusiasm of Create Together’s new […]

Restaurant openings point to business revival in Chester

By Shawn Cunningham © 2025 Telegraph Publishing LLC As the days turn colder it seems the business climate in Chester is heating up with around a dozen businesses opening, moving, expanding or changing hands in industries as disparate as restaurants and livestock farming, home decor and childcare. And with all that, a number of prominent […]

Estimates for PCB fix at GM high school top $20 million

By Shawn Cunningham © 2025 Telegraph Publishing LLC While officials at Green Mountain Union High School have reduced the amount of airborne PCBs to acceptable levels with air filtering, the long-term solution – as spelled out at last Thursday’s Green Mountain Unified School District board meeting will be more than $20 million and there’s no […]

Family Center Food Shelf fills the gaps amid an uneasy economy, SNAP cuts, federal shutdown

By Cynthia Prairie ©2025 Telegraph Publishing LLC On a recent afternoon in late October, the buzz in the grocery store grew louder as more shoppers arrived. The aisles soon were packed with people — an easy occurrence in the small store. It was becoming a more typical day at the Food Shelf at the Chester-Andover […]

  • Other Recent Articles

  • Disability Awareness and De-escalation Training Overview Nov. 14

    Disability Awareness and De-escalation Training Overview Nov. 14

    Calling all emergency responders. Dr. Kendra LaRoche will present an overview on Disability Awareness and De-escalation Training from 11:30 a.m. until 1 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 14 at Neighborhood Connections, 5700 VT-100 (Mountain Marketplace) in Londonderry. She is executive director of the Special Needs Support Center and is the creator of the workshop. Continuing Education […]

  • Annual Proctorsville Ghost Walk set for Nov. 9

    Annual Proctorsville Ghost Walk set for Nov. 9

    Proctorsville seems to favor a diverse group of hauntings and spirits. One ghost is actually written into the deed of a home and another has a thing for pennies, children spirits have their favorite haunt and the village boasts the most haunted inn in Vermont, the Golden Stage Inn. Learn more about these and other […]

  • Natural fabric dyeing workshop at Fletcher Farm Nov. 8

    Natural fabric dyeing workshop at Fletcher Farm Nov. 8

    The Rural Rivers Project research team at Dartmouth College will host a free natural dye workshop with native plants and cyanotypes from 1 to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 8  for residents of the greater Ludlow and Cavendish area at Create Together at Fletcher Farm, 611 VT-103 in Ludlow. This event is part of a […]

  • St. Luke's wreath workshops return Nov. 20-22

    St. Luke’s wreath workshops return Nov. 20-22

    The annual wreath-decorating workshops will take place on Nov. 20 through 22 in Willard Hall at St. Luke’s Church, 313 Main St. in Chester. Those who register and pay by Saturday, Nov. 15 will receive a $5 discount on the price of $55 per wreath. Checks should be made out to St. Luke’s Church, with […]

  • Join VINE Sanctuary for 'Very Special Halloween'

    Join VINE Sanctuary for ‘Very Special Halloween’

    Pasture Pals presents A Very Special Halloween at the VINE Sanctuary, 201 Massey Road in Springfield, beginning at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Nov. 1. Space is limited, so click to grab your spot and get ready for a spook-tacularly kind celebration. Kids and families are invited to enjoy a morning of pumpkin-filled fun where creativity, […]

  • Londonderry cemeteries to close Nov. 1

    Londonderry cemeteries to close Nov. 1

    The Cemetery Commission of the Town of Londonderry will be closing its cemeteries for the season on Saturday, Nov. 1. To allow for the observance of Veterans Day on Tuesday, Nov. 11, clean-up of the cemeteries will begin on Nov. 15. The Cemetery Commission requests that all decorations that were added to the cemeteries over […]

  • As federal funds for food benefits shut off, state officials scramble for stopgap measures

    As federal funds for food benefits shut off, state officials scramble for stopgap measures

    By Theo Wells-Spackman ©2025 VTDigger.org The Vermont Department for Children and Families said Wednesday it was directed by the federal government earlier this month to pause food stamp distribution for November due to the continued shutdown in Washington, D.C. State officials said Thursday that they’re rushing to deliver stopgaps for food and heating assistance. The U.S. […]

  • Autumn Pilgrimage Open House at Rockingham Meeting House Nov. 1

    Autumn Pilgrimage Open House at Rockingham Meeting House Nov. 1

    Rockingham Meeting House, 11 Meeting House Road in Bellows Falls, is hosting a free Autumn Pilgrimage Open House from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 1. Enjoy a full day of history, learning and fall fun. Discover plans for the Preservation Project, which will kick off construction in the spring of 2026, and […]

  • Cavendish board adopts five-year Capital Plan

    Cavendish board adopts five-year Capital Plan

    By Lorien Strange ©2025 Telegraph Publishing LLC The Cavendish Select Board adopted the town’s five-year Capital Plan for fiscal 2027-2032 at its Monday, Oct. 20 meeting, following several years of development and discussion with the Mount Ascutney Regional Planning Commission. Kicking off the evening with a public hearing, the Select Board discussed the plan, which […]

  • VSO Trio brings concert to Ludlow Nov. 2

    VSO Trio brings concert to Ludlow Nov. 2

    A trio from the Vermont Symphony Orchestra comes to the Heald Auditorium in Ludlow Town Hall, 37 S. Depot St., at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 2 for an afternoon of delightful chamber music from around the globe. Featuring violinists Jane Kittredge and Brooke Quiggins Saulnier and  cellist John Dunlop, this time-traveling program covers all […]

  • Ludlow Rotary hosts another successful Chili Cook-Off

    Ludlow Rotary hosts another successful Chili Cook-Off

    Ludlow Rotary Club’s 34th Annual Chili Cook-Off was a major success. The weather was perfect, hundreds of “taste testers” were treated to a large variety of chilis and the many chili chefs were pleased with the response to their unique brands of “real” chili. Additionally, the Ludlow Rotary gained resources to continue sponsoring local projects. […]

  • Bring a mouse, watch 'Bills Lumber,' benefit raptor rescue on Oct. 25 in Newfane

    Bring a mouse, watch ‘Bills Lumber,’ benefit raptor rescue on Oct. 25 in Newfane

    A free benefit screening of Bills Lumber will take place at 7 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 25 at Williamsville Hall, 35 Dover Road in Newfane. Theresa Maggio’s documentary recounts the history and last days of the beloved antique sawmill in Wardsboro that was owned and operated by the Bills family. Earlier this year it played […]

  • Travis Van Alstyne accepting the Hathaway Award at the History Center in Barre last week. Photo provided

    Chester native Travis Van Alstyne wins 2025 Hathaway History Award

    By Shawn Cunningham ©2025 Telegraph Publishing LLC Chester native and filmmaker Travis Van Alstyne was awarded the 2025 Richard O. Hathaway Award by the Vermont Historical Society for his animated short film Love of the Land. According to a VHS press release the award was presented to Van Alstyne at the Society’s annual meeting on […]

  • Invasives Part 3: How to tackle those colorful invasive shrubs that still need to go

    Invasives Part 3: How to tackle those colorful invasive shrubs that still need to go

    By Will Danforth ©2025 Telegraph Publishing LLC Ffor the last in our three-part series on invasives, let’s focus on specific shrubs that turn color after our native trees and shrubs, making them easy to find. For more photos of invasives, click the Vermont invasives website. So let’s take care of our home turf! Plants pull […]

  • Whiting Library to host free astronomy and telescope how-to sessions Oct. 23 & 25

    Whiting Library to host free astronomy and telescope how-to sessions Oct. 23 & 25

    Whiting Library and members of the Southern Vermont Astronomy Group invite community members to a free two-part mini-series on the basics of astronomy and telescopes. The programs will be offered at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 23 and Saturday, Oct. 25 at Whiting Library, 117 Main St. in Chester. On Thursday, Oct. 23, SoVerA members […]

  • Blue rally, red rally on the Chester Green

    Blue rally, red rally on the Chester Green

    By Shawn Cunningham and Cynthia Prairie ©2025 Telegraph Publishing LLC On a picture perfect October Saturday, two polarized political factions shared Chester’s Green – at different times – to hold peaceful rallies with very different vibes and vastly different numbers in attendance. The Green was already crowded by the 10:30 a.m. start time for Chester’s […]

  • All Recent Articles